Part
01
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Part
01
Industry Overview - Apartment/House Cleaning
The general characteristics of the home / apartment cleaning industry in the US are: 75% of the contracted services are for cleaning houses and 25% for cleaning apartments, service costs cost, on average, U $20.00 a U $25.00, services are usually offered through social networks (Facebook, Instagram), customers are usually couples with annual income greater than $100 000 per year and over 45 years, and it is a profitable sector that has grown more than 3% in 2018. Some key players in the market are MaidPro, Home Cleaning Centers of America, and Merry Maids, and the main trends are use of social networks to facilitate contact with customers, sustainable cleaning market and use of prepayment.
Percentage of cleaning services IN HOMES AND apartments
- About 75% of U.S. cleaning services are hired for homes. The other 25% are hired to clean apartments.
How services are usually advertised to customers
- In the U.S apartment / residential cleaning services are usually advertised through three means: applications, websites, and online platforms (the majority in 2018) or via telephone (a call center).
- The main way to hire residential cleaning services in the U.S is through companies that manage a cleaning staff. Most of the companies in operation in the U.S are franchises.
Price ranges for CLEANING SERVICES
- According to the most recent survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2017), the average hourly rate for residential cleaning services in the U.S is $20.24.
- According to Buckets & Bows and Thumbtack, the average cost of house cleaning is $25-50 per hour per cleaner. The total price depends on the size of the home and type of cleaning. A 3-bedroom, 2000 square foot home costs $150 to $250 to clean on average, while a one-bedroom apartment starts at $80 to $110. Deep cleaning, laundry, window cleaning, and move-out or event cleanup will add to the cost.
- In addition to the size of the home, other factors that influence the price are the frequency with which the client requests the residential cleaning, if it will provide the cleaning products and if there are pets at home.
TYPICAL CUSTOMER OF THE house/apartment cleaning SERVICE
- According to data from the Small Business Development Center Network (SBDCNet), the main target market for residential cleaning services in U.S. includes individuals with above-average annual family income, generally above $100,000.
- In the U.S., the demand for house and apartment-cleaning services is most popular with people of higher than average wealth looking for a little more free time.
- Consumers who spend their income on cleaning services are often part of a two-income household.
- Other consumers of household cleaning services include families with elderly members living in the home.
Is the industry currently profiting or not?
- The residential cleaning industry in the U.S experienced a financial crisis in 2008/2009, but today is very profitable.
- Revenues from house/apartment cleaning services grew 3.2% a year to $65 billion in 2019.
- Industry analysts predicted that growth in US residential cleaning services in 2019 will result in "an increase in the percentage of households with annual incomes over $100,000, with numbers rising from 23.1% of the US population in 2014 to 24.9% by 2019."
- Analysts also foresee "an increasing number of families with two incomes and a demographically traditionally more willing to pay for domestic cleaning services."
- The residential cleaning industry is very competitive. Marketing and choosing the right locations are a few crucial elements for running a successful business.
- Large populations of wealthy families ensure consistent business and high revenue for residential and apartment cleaning services.
- Another factor that boosts the sector's profitability is the growing number of elderly individuals in the United States. The increased average age for a US citizen has created a demand for industrial services that help the elderly in daily tasks.
3 key players in the market
- According to First Research,"fragmented, with the 50 largest companies generating just 30 percent of revenue and no business owning an overwhelming majority of the market."
- MaidPro and Home Cleaning Centers of America are the franchises with the highest visibility in the industry in the years 2017 and 2018.
- These companies only higher professionals and use OSHA-approved cleaning products. Their business models are used as a basis for other companies.
- Lack of communication and trust are some leading factors that cause consumers to switch their cleaning service. However, Maid Pro and Home Cleaning Centers of America excel in these categories.
- The American company Merry Maids is another example of a successful residential cleaning service. It offers a full range of domestic cleaning services, including ecological cleaning, and a satisfaction guarantee, or they will clean your space again with no charge.
- Molly Maids also meets the new safety restrictions that began in 2018 with their Design for the Environment (DfE).
3 trends IN the RESIDENTIAL cleaning industry
TREND #1: COMMUNICATING THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA
- Make it easy for homeowners to contact the companies that offer residence cleaning services, mainly through social networks (Facebook, Instagram, twitter and whatsapp).
- Since 2017, all major companies have adapted to communicating with customers through social media. Most companies that do not adopt this change now face bankruptcy.
- Examples of US residential cleaning services companies that have successfully transitioned include My Amazing Maid and Handmaid Cleaning.
- My Amazing Maid keeps a blog, updating it with news from cleaning culture. They share these posts on their social media networks. The Maid swapped paid magazine ads for Instagram and Facebook posts and chat on their site.
- The company Handmaid Cleaning has experienced much success using Facebook Messenger to contact customers, claiming 100% responses, as opposed to the 40% they were claiming with their old forms of communication.
TREND # 2: SUSTAINABLE RESIDENTIAL CLEANING
- Sustainability is a very big trend in the apartment and house cleaning service industry. Companies that are not adapting to green housekeeping standards have lost a large number of their customer base to companies who highlight and focus on green and environmentally-friendly cleaning solutions.
- In the last 5 years, consumers have placed a huge emphasis on wanting a commitment to clean and sustainable cleaning solutions, and have consistently demonstrated this with hiring services that promise these cleaning procedures.
- In the U.S. residential cleaning industry, companies like Clean Focus Services, Filta Environmental Kitchen Solutions, Enovana Green Cleaning are offering environmentally-friendly services and have increased their profitability because they have increased their, clientele, and charge for the increased value of their services due to their commitment to sustainability.
- The trend has had a large enough impact that customers now are calling for green-certified companies such as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), CIMS (Cleaning Industry Management Standard) to include the Green Building (GB) criteria.
TREND #3: PREPAYMENT TECHNOLOGIES
- The implementation of payment technologies markets is a very strong trend in the US house / apartment cleaning industry.
- Some companies that have not adapted and are being replaced by companies with prepayment technology.
- The market for cleaning houses and apartments in the U.S does not have systems to ensure customer loyalty, so if the company does not fit the needs of the client, it is replaced.
- Another factor that demonstrates this trend is the public's desire for a process that reduces the amount of time spent dealing with setting up and paying for the service.
- Customers accustomed to an online payment or prepayment function with services like Uber will continue to expect other industries to adopt this technology.
- Tools such as Joober have been acquired by strong industry players like Harding's Cleaning Division, The Maid Mentor, and Clean Focus Services, which have all invested their efforts in payment automation tactics and the trend is proven to increase their profitability.